Three figures from South Gloucestershire Liberal Democrats have been speaking this morning of their reaction to the resignation of David Davis, Secretary for Exiting the EU, and a junior minister in the department.

Davis resigned late last night, with his letter of resignation setting out the rifts in Cabinet laid bare by the “Common Rulebook” negotiating offer announced by Theresa May last week.

Cllr. Claire Young, Parliamentary Spokesperson for Thornbury & Yate, tweeted overnight:“Obviously the PM was speaking too soon when she announced her cabinet had agreed an approach on #Brexit. Did David Davis jump to embarrass her or was he pushed for demanding a damaging hard Brexit at any cost?”

This morning she adds:“We now know from his resignation letter that he jumped, at the most critical time yet in the UK’s negotiations for the EU and at the first sight of a plan to bring to Brussels – and he has taken Steve Baker with him. This looks more and more like a co-ordinated effort to bring down the Government in order to fight for the hardest, most damaging Brexit at any cost. Unlike the Tories and Labour, the Lib Dem position is clear: we cannot crash out of the EU without a public vote to approve the exit deal.”

Louise Harris, Parliamentary Spokesperson for Filton & Bradley Stoke, adds:“The Tories are clearly in disarray over the Brexit negotiations. Theresa May’s smokescreen about a cabinet agreement on the issue hasn’t even lasted a week. It’s hard to see how she can possibly continue leading the country when she can’t even lead her own ministers. Labour are just as useless on Brexit, but Lib Dems have a plan we’re all behind: a People’s Vote on the final Brexit deal, with an option to remain a member of the EU if the deal doesn’t stand up. Nearly 90,000 people have now signed our petition in favour of the plan.”

Lindsay Gough, South Gloucestershire Lib Dems Vice-Chair for the Kingswood constituency, quips on Davis’s successor:“I think the emperor just got another new set of clothes with Dominic Raab's appointment. The Conservatives promised a ‘Strong and Stable Government’ but they have been completely derailed by their own people. Goodness knows what would have happened if there was any real opposition from Labour.”

Local Lib Dem councillors have welcomed a move by South Gloucestershire Council to end the use of disposable cups at council facilities after the Cabinet approved the plan on Monday. This move follows a successful motion by Lib Dem councillors Claire Young and Mike Drew earlier this year, which required the Cabinet to take action.

Lib Dem Leader, Cllr Claire Young, said: “We welcome the fact that our motion received cross-party support and that the administration say that they will implement these changes by the end of the year, as we proposed. I’m proud that we were able to provide leadership to the Council on this issue and that South Gloucestershire will now become one of the first authorities in the country to take this step.”

Lib Dem councillor (Yate North) Mike Drew said: “This change should stop over 36,000 unrecyclable cups being thrown away every year. While we very much welcome the fact that Conservative administration have followed our lead on this issue, we will be pressing them to go even further in eliminating other unnecessary waste. The administration expects residents to reduce waste, with the introduction of smaller bins, so it’s only right that they practice what they preach.”

Louise Harris, Lib Dem Parliamentary Spokesperson for Filton and Bradley Stoke, has called a piece written by the constituency’s Conservative MP Jack Lopresti “disgraceful” and “insensitive to local workers”.

According to notices displayed in Yate Health Centre there will now be a triage nurse at the Minor Injuries Unit to prioritise patients on Mondays. Local Liberal Democrat councillors Ruth Davis and Sue Walker are really pleased about this improvement and that there is now also a clear list of what the unit staff cannot do and signposting to where patients can get help.

Cllr Sue Walker commented: “The triage nurse is great news as this will mean that those most in need will be seen first. Whilst patients will initially be seen in a corridor they can ask to be triaged elsewhere if they need some privacy. If it speeds things up on Mondays, hopefully, this will be extended to other days of the week.”

Cllr Ruth Davis said: “People from a wide area now know of the unit and it is their first place of choice to seek treatment, especially as Southmead A & E is so busy. It is really important what is on offer at the MIU is really clear. Residents continue to ask us for the unit’s opening hours to be extended and for it to cover things like minor ailments. This could take the strain off of local GPs and other services so we have a Health One Stop Unit.”

South Gloucestershire Lib Dem Group Leader, Cllr Claire Young, praised staff: “They do a fantastic job under increasing pressure. I hope this new initiative will improve things for staff and patients as they are in desperate need of extra resources.”

Local Lib Dem Heath spokesperson Cllr Sue Hope said: “We will continue to lobby for extra resources for Yate, as the service there is so popular. We need even more services to be provided out of Yate now people know the facilities are there.”

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